In the afternoon of the same day, Fan Xian had a cordial meeting with the relevant officials of the Internal Treasury Transit Department in his temporary residence. Other officials on Jiangnan Road were frightened by him and did not dare to get close to him, but these officials of the Internal Treasury were his direct subordinates. He couldn't escape, so he had to bite the bullet and come to see him. Fortunately, Fan Xian had already shed the coldness of the riverside, said a few words with a smile, and set a date for departure, and then sent the officials out in a pleasant manner. When the government came, those internal treasury officials were a little confused for a while.
In the evening, it was a reception banquet prepared at Jiangnanju. Due to the same reason, the chief officials of Yanjiang prefecture and county just sat down for a while and then retreated. Anyway, they did their best, and the court rules did not allow them to grow old in Suzhou city. Staying there, I wanted to stay as far away from Fan Tisi of the Overwatch Council as possible, and it was easy to find a reason. Only the officials of the Suzhou government were not allowed to go, and looked at the first seat in fear.
In the chief, Fan Xian, Governor of Jiangnan, Xue Qing, and the governor had a happy chat, and the atmosphere was harmonious. The Suzhou magistrate present had a bitter face and forced a smile, but the Hangzhou magistrate knew that the imperial envoy would be stationed in Hangzhou in the future, so he stayed there with a shy face. , under the murderous eyes of Suzhou officials, they kept flattering Fan Xian and the governor. This Hangzhou magistrate was a true human being, and he was not too afraid of Fan Xian's tricks of turning his face and denying others, so he decided to please his boss, no matter when and where, there would be nothing wrong.
After the banquet, the governor was first sent to the official sedan chair, and the two of them made a plan to go to Xue's residence tomorrow to bother them. Only then did Fan Xian bid farewell to the officials in the building, and got into the carriage he was carrying.
He still has the same temperament as before, he likes to ride in a car rather than a sedan chair.
The front curtain of the carriage was not blocked, the night wind from Suzhou City was blowing, and there was also a little clear sound of silk and bamboo in my ears. The south of the Yangtze River is rich and rich, and the rich merchants often raise good actors. The brothel business in Suzhou and Hangzhou is also famous.
Fan Xian patted his cheek lightly, letting the night wind blow away the slight heat on his face. Although the true energy in his body had recovered a lot, his drinking capacity had not returned. After being persuaded by the officials today, I felt a little dizzy.
"The address in Hangzhou has been fixed, what about the city of Suzhou?" He asked softly with half-closed eyes.
Shi Chanli sat next to him, thought for a while and said, "Sang Wen won't arrive until the middle of the month... student... student."
Fan Xian laughed, opened his eyes and sighed, "I've really wronged you by asking you to do these things, please wait another year or two, you also know that there are not many trustworthy people around me."
What he and Shi Chanli were talking about was the grand plan of Baoyuelou to go south. Brothel business is not only the business with the fastest return of money, but also can often play unexpected roles, such as intelligence and the like. When Fan Xian was in the capital, he had already planned to open his brothel to the south of the Yangtze River. Although he would definitely encounter a lot of resistance, with his own status and power, there shouldn't be any problem in achieving success within a year.
Shi Chanli asked: "My lord, can this matter be postponed? After all, you will leave for the Neiku the day after tomorrow. There is no backbone in Suzhou City. If you want to choose a location to buy a house and a girl at this time, I am afraid that I will not be able to control the situation." .”
"I'm not here, there is still the Third Highness..." Fan Xian's eyes flashed a wicked smile, "Tomorrow I will pick a few old masters for the Third Highness, although he will always go to Hangzhou with me in the future, but these days he I will still stay in Suzhou... Don't forget, what kind of business does this His Highness do in the capital? Don't look at him at a young age, but he is very clear about the doorways inside. With His Highness coming forward, of course, the Governor-General is not easy to say anything, you You can buy whichever building you want. As for those popular girls... There is no reason why you can't do anything if you spend more money? With His Highness behind you, you don't have to worry that the brothel bosses in Jiangnan will dare to play tricks on you , since it's just for fun, but it's just a show of throwing money at people, don't you still worry that you don't have money?"
Shi Chanli was dumbfounded, thinking that His Majesty asked you to educate the third prince, did you... think of using the third prince to open a brothel in the south of the Yangtze River? This is too rebellious!
And then he thought of another thing: why does your lord carry so much money around him? The one hundred and thirty-eight thousand and eighty-eight taels of snowflake silver ingots in the box must not be moved, so he must still have a lot of silver notes in his arms when he spoke like this before—thinking of this episode, Shi Chanli said worriedly: "If you want to If you buy it tomorrow, the Jiangnan brothel industry will definitely take the opportunity to raise the price... The money spent is like running water, and I don’t know how many days it can last.”
At this time, the carriage rolled over the clean bluestone road in Suzhou City, passed through a gate, and came to the bustling business district during the day.
Even at night, the signs of the shops on this street are still extremely bright. Suzhou is the largest port for the production of internal warehouses. Therefore, in terms of prosperity and commercial development, there is no other city in the world that can compare with Dongyi City. the city that passes it. Buying glass here is four-fifths cheaper than in Northern Qi, but Fan Xian knows the cost of such things as glass, and knows that the merchants in Suzhou have already made a lot of money in the past few decades.
In addition to the signboards of various shops, the most conspicuous thing is the blue cloth that pops up every so often. The most conspicuous is not that this piece of green cloth is dyed with fireflies that can glow at night, but that this The green cloth exhibition office is not a restaurant, and the blue cloth is painted with a pattern somewhat similar to the Fan family emblem.
There are eight or nine banks on this street!
Fan Xian's carriage drove slowly on the quiet street. When he passed by some new blue cloth, he pointed to the door of this bank and said in a low voice, "Even if you are poor to death, don't come here." home bank."
Shi Chanli heard the words and went to see it, but only looked at the general idea. After thinking for a while, he said curiously: "Investment? I haven't heard of it... It's not the Taiping Bank. How can anyone dare to deal with them."
Fan Xian smiled and said nothing.
At that time, the world's commerce was gradually developed, and it became very difficult to trade large piles of transactions with cash, so bank notes gradually became a favorite thing for merchants, and institutions such as silver banks began to show their strengths. importance. But for the existence of banks like banks, what people value most is credit and confidence, so in this river and lake, there is no problem of big fish eating small fish. After decades, there are still only a few big fish in the world .
And the three largest fish are called Nanqing, Beiqi, and Dongyicheng respectively.
The official bank notes issued by the Southern Qing Dynasty and the Northern Qi Dynasty were official notes, of course they had the best credit, but the officials in the DPRK and China did not realize the importance of them. Therefore, in addition to saving the coffin book, ordinary businessmen choose the Taiping Bank established by Dongyi City.
Although the Taiping Bank was the capital of Dongyi City, according to legend, some princes and nobles in the Northern Qi Dynasty and Nanqing also invested in it, so no matter how the Three Kingdoms quarreled and fought, it was amazing that the bank itself was not affected. Twenty or thirty years later, Taiping Bank has a first-class reputation, strong capital, considerate service, and secretly escorted by the upper echelons of various countries. It has naturally become the largest bank in the world.
None of them, Taiping Bank is the largest in the world.
…
…
On this street, Taiping Bank opened three branches. Fan Xian glanced coldly at the green cloth floating by outside the car, and said, "You can get the money at Taiping Bank."
Shi Chanli responded.
"You can take as much as you want." Fan Xian said calmly, "I will give you the seal and number before I leave, so don't be petty and reluctant to spend money."
Take as much as you want? How can there be such a good thing in this world? Shi Chanli was stunned, and said with a smile: "Could it be that the Taiping Bank was opened by an adult."
Fan Xian scolded with a smile: "If I have so much money, everything will be solved easily. Why should I have to deal with those people?"
Shi Chanli was his confidant, and knew he was talking about the Northern Qi side, so he didn't answer after a little nervousness, but he immediately thought of the inner treasury from Beiqi, and thought of the opening of the inner treasury in the near future, if Fan Xian wanted to help Xia Qifei and If the Ming family wins the bid, he will need a huge amount of funds to make it happen. He frowned and said, "My lord, the internal treasury is in a hurry to spend money. If I don't take advantage of it for a while, I think the business of opening the store will be slow."
Fan Xian shook his head: "The silver taels you need to adjust are not of the same order of magnitude as the silver taels needed to win the bid from the internal treasury, so you don't have to worry about it. As for opening the store, you should do it as soon as possible. First, while His Highness is still in Suzhou, he probably has This interest makes it convenient to do things. Secondly... "
He thought of his father who stayed in the capital, and couldn't help laughing: "Secondly, the girls in the south of the Yangtze River are still waiting for our old Fan's family to rescue them. The sooner they come, the better."
This is true, since the rules of Baoyuelou were established in the capital and supplemented by that girl Shi Qinger, although the girls of Baoyuelou are still doing skin and meat business, their lives are much better than before. The commission was reduced, and the doctor visited regularly, and signed a novel "labor contract". The girls in Baoyuelou were really grateful to Fan Xian. The momentum spread, and as soon as the influence came out, the brothel industry in the entire Kyoto now began to show a healthy and upward feeling of sunrise.
If Baoyuelou can really open a chain in Jiangnan, Liu Rushi and others in Jiangnan must be very happy with Fan Qin's arrival.
※※※
Returning to the Huayuan that the salt merchant happily let out, Fan Xian took the hot soup that Sisi handed over and drank it, not only sobering up, but also warming his body. He leaned over the table and read a few courtyard newspapers sent by the courtyard, and found that the world was peaceful, so he relaxed his heart and let Sisi go to sleep in the back room first, but he walked out, put on a thick veil, and rubbed his hands , knocked on the door of another room.
Not far behind him, the Tiger Guard and the six swordsmen hurriedly hid in the darkness.
The door creaked open, revealing Haitang's sleepy face.
Before Haitang could speak, Fan Xian said in surprise, "Did you go to bed so early?"
Haitang smiled slightly, let him into the room, turned on the smokeless oil lamp a little brighter, and said softly: "This merchant's house is very luxurious, and this bed is also comfortable. I'm afraid you will get drunk at the welcome banquet tonight." , so I went to sleep first."
Fan Xian took a closer look and found that the girl's clothes were not very thick, just a very simple undergarment. He frowned and said, "Wear more. Although you have a high realm, you are naturally cold, so you are not easy to provoke."
Haitang didn't bother to pay attention to him, so she yawned, leaned her jaw halfway on the bed, and said, "What's the matter, let's talk about it quickly."
Fan Xian was taken aback for a moment, but forgot what he wanted to say when he came here. After he boarded the Beijing boat last night, Haitang disappeared without a sound, and appeared in the garden surreptitiously until the afternoon. Could it be that he just came to confirm if she was there? Or is it that he is used to chatting with this Northern Qi saint like an old friend
"It's hard for me to get drunk." Fan Xian was a quick-witted person, smiling at Haitang's first words and said, "You know I'm afraid of death and timid, so I don't drink alcohol except in front of people I can trust completely. will get drunk."
"So you can only get drunk at home?" Haitang asked curiously, opening those bright eyes.
Fan Xian shook his head: "Besides being able to completely believe in myself, I also have to believe that when I'm drunk, the people around me are capable enough to protect my safety."
Haitang laughed, knowing what he meant, but then felt sorry for the other party, and said pitifully: "Don't tell me, you grew up so big, you only got drunk in the Songhe Residence in Shangjing... once."
That time when he went to Beijing in the Northern Qi Dynasty, in front of Haitang, Fan Xian got drunk wantonly until he fell into a coma.
Fan Xian said angrily, "You still have the face to mention...of course," he couldn't see the sympathy in Haitang's eyes, and said coldly, "I was often drunk when I was young, so don't take yourself too seriously."
Haitang smiled: "At that time, that... blind master was always by your side?"
Fan Xian didn't reply.
Haitang suddenly frowned and said: "Then...it is said that you became a poet after drinking, and you wrote thousands of poems drunk in the palace of the Qing Dynasty...is it also a lie?"
Fan Xian waved his hand, not wanting to continue this boring topic with her, and asked directly, "Has the money arrived yet?"
Haitang sighed boredly, sat up, looked into his eyes and nodded seriously: "Since August, His Majesty has made arrangements, you don't have to worry."
Fan Xian laughed at himself and said, "What if you don't worry? I can't ask the old man to transfer money from the treasury for his own use."
"Speaking of which." Haitang frowned and said, "You actually brought more than a hundred thousand taels of cash with you... Isn't that too stupid? I don't believe that you just want to show off when you catch the wind by the river. "
Fan Xian thought to himself that this was an arrangement he had to make, how can he tell you the inside story. No one can say this.
"It's just some useless money, what are you afraid of?"
"You have not been an official for two years, but you have so much money around you." Haitang said with a half-smile, "Including you and your father's salary, it may take more than a hundred years to save so much money. How to explain to officials?"
Fan Xian shook his head and said, "Don't forget, my Fan family is a big family, and the family property is the real source of money."
"Oh? The big family who can easily give out so much money... don't you have any crimes? Be careful that the censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate will refer to you for a chapter."
"Participate." Fan Xian said with a smile: "Even if the clan doesn't have so much money, the palace knows that I have a big business in the past two years, so they won't suspect me."
"A brothel, a dozen bookstores... can earn so much money?" Haitang asked doubtfully.
"Don't underestimate the money-making skills of my second child... Of course, I have been an official in the court for two years, and I have received a lot of benefits. Basically, they are buried in that box. Don't mention it, I have to change it when I leave Beijing. Neat silver ingots, if there is no help from the old man to adjust them from the warehouse, I really have nothing to do." Fan Xian said with a smile: "When things are over, the so-called bribery silver will be mixed with these clean silver, and the court will not say anything about me. Just to collect enough money, I can search all the money that can be searched in the property under my name, and now the capital is really an empty shell."
It was only now that Haitang knew that he still had this plan, and she couldn't help being a little contemptuous: "With your status, why are you so concerned about cleaning up the bribes?"
"Mountain man... has its own magical effect."
"Then you put all your money in the box, and don't move it under the watchful eyes of everyone. What will you do with your money in the future?"
Fan Xian smiled and said, "Isn't there you? And there is also that lovely Emperor, the money he sent to the Taiping Bank this time is not a small amount. I think he won't mind if I take a few to spend. "
Haitang was taken aback for a moment, only then did she realize that she would not be inferior to Fan Xian when it came to fighting and strategizing, and when it came to stealing, cheating, and making money, people like herself... had a big gap with the members of the Fan family. Well, in the next few days, I have to keep an eye on it.
The scene at this time was really ridiculous. Fan Xian and Haitang, two people who are recognized by the world as being elegant and detached from dust, whispered in the room on a gloomy night about such copper-smelling topics as silver taels, bank notes, banks, and money laundering.
And in the main hall of the mansion, bright candles hung high, and the large box of silver representing the spirit of Fan Xian's Jiangnan Government Declaration was placed there openly.
People passing by couldn't help but take a look at this box, but there were guards everywhere, and there were six swordsmen hidden in the dark to protect them. Hundreds of thousands of taels of silver is certainly enticing, but if you want to grab this box of silver, Jiangyang thieves or money-grubbing thieves might as well rush directly to the government treasury to grab official silver, so I am afraid that the chance of success will be higher.
The box was opened wide open in this way, exposing it to everyone, and the snow-white silver ingots were exposed inside the box, emitting a seductive and soul-devouring light, and there was a faint and extremely dangerous chill seeping out of it.
※※※
A few more days later, Fan Xian, the imperial envoy who caused the whole Jiangnan Road to make a fuss, finally left Suzhou. He brought all his subordinates along the official road, and headed southwest to the Neiku Transit Department. Although the third prince was still in Suzhou City, the officials were greatly relieved, thinking that as long as Fan Tisi was not around, it would not be easy to fool a child
The third prince didn't know what these officials were thinking, otherwise, with his vicious temperament and temper that was about to explode at this moment, maybe he would play some new tricks.
In the past two days, he was already a little angry in his heart. Fan Xian did not bring himself with him when he went to the inner treasury. It was raised by the inner treasury, so that place naturally became the most guarded place by the Qing court. The ban was stricter than that of the imperial palace. Middle—It is the lifelong wish of many people to be able to go to Neiku to have a look at the scenery. Although the third prince has the dignity of a prince, he is still very curious about the inner treasury, but without His Majesty's special permission, the prince is not qualified to go to the inner treasury. I thought that following Fan Xian to the south of the Yangtze River this time would get what he wanted, but Fan Xian did not expect He actually left himself in Suzhou!
With a bang, a middle-aged scholar who looked like a well-educated scholar climbed out crying uncontrollably. The third prince followed and scolded viciously: "Father made Fan Xian come to be a gentleman! He dares to run away! I dare to kick people!"
The people in the mansion were silent, and the imperial envoy left, who would dare to offend this young master? He even dared to kick the teacher Xiaoyi invited by the governor's mansion. If he said a few more words, wouldn't he be dead
The third prince was furious, and out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a person sneaking out along the corridor, stopped quickly, walked over to have a look... but found that it was Shi Chanli, Fan Xian's trusted protégé.
Although he was arrogant and ruthless, considering Fan Xian's face, he couldn't treat Shi Chanli well, and asked curiously, "Where is Mr. Shi going?"
Shi Chanli seemed taken aback, and flattered him, "I've seen Your Highness, I'm going out for a stroll."
The third prince was taken aback and said, "I haven't seen any fun places in Suzhou City, so you have to take me with you."
Shi Chanli begged for mercy: "Your Highness, the teacher has a strict order. The homework has been assigned for these days. If you don't finish it, what will happen?... Besides, it's a big deal to let the teacher know that I'm taking His Highness out for fun. a crime."
The third prince frowned, and snorted coldly: "Just do it, it's just..." He looked at Shi Chanli's flickering eyes and laughed: "You have to tell you, if you don't go to the inner library with the teacher, it's okay to stay in Suzhou." What are you doing, and where are you planning to go at this time?"
Shi Chanli was blocked by these words, hesitated for a while, hesitated to speak, and then lowered his voice and smiled wryly after a long while: "Your Highness is not ignorant, the students are pitiful, and they were ordered by the master to do that job."
The third prince's eyes lit up, and he asked tentatively: "But... Baoyue Tower is going to open in Suzhou?"
Shi Chanli covered his mouth in a little astonishment, as if he was very annoyed that he had slipped up.
The third prince sneered twice, but his heart was filled with joy. He thought to himself that if he could resume his old business in Suzhou, it would be much happier than sitting in this mansion. His shares in the building in the capital were forced by Fan Xian. Having seized the past, and now knowing that Fan Xian is also a real person with superficial morals, the Third Prince would not miss this opportunity.
Shi Chanli looked at the reaction of the third prince, and admired the teacher in his heart.